The Smithville Public Library presents The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Project Grant, “Easy as ABC (Arts Bridging Community)”.
This project’s central idea to use public art to help build community and bridge what divides us. As a community, we will collaborate through “imagination picnics” that will bring neighbors together to talk about what is important and what makes Smithville interesting and unique, and use that information to create signage (wayfinding) to take people to important locations, to create public art installations, and to create the mural to be installed at the DAEP—the metal school building (bus barn/Tiger Academy) on SH 95 where Loop 230 intersects.
Each event is designed to maximize community engagement, and to seek input from as many people in Smithville as possible.
This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. To find out more about how National Endowment for the Arts grants impact individuals and communities, visit www.arts.gov.
“Imagination Picnics”
Community meetings were held in several locations around town.
The Fiber Addicts went to each location to “yarn bomb” them to help promote the events
“Imagination Stations”
At these events, tables will be set up so that community members may talk about specific projects:
- Wayfinding Signs (Facilitator: April Daniels)
- Wayfinding signs are signs that help people find the locations that are of greatest interest
- Area artists will help coordinate and provide technical assistance to community members who want to make the signs
- We need your help determining which Smithville locations deserve wayfinding signs and in what the signs should look like!
- Historic/Cultural Mural (Facilitator: Clover Cochran)
- The mural will be painted on sheets of wood to be installed over the corrugated metal of the DAEP
- The Grant will pay for an artist who can work with the community to develop concepts and an artistic vision of the events, people, and places that make Smithville what it is today
- We need your suggestions and comments about what the mural should include!
- Easy as ABC (Facilitator: Clover Cochran)
- This project is about Art in Public Places
- We need your help to talk about which places need more art and what the themes of the artwork should be!
- Outreach (Facilitator: Jill Strube)
- We need your help in talking about how we can reach out to more of the community to get everyone’s ideas!
- “Fishbowl Chat” (Facilitator: Judy Bergeron)
- Here you can sit and chat with a neighbor to talk about what’s on the cards in the fishbowl or just ask them questions you’ve always wanted to ask. Enjoy!
